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Reading

Books I give as gifts • Books about other worlds (that help you see this one) • Practical books • Not-quite books

Reading is such magic. A way to connect with the thoughts of someone long-dead or someone from a different culture speaking a different language, a way to experience what it might be like inside someone else’s mind or circumstance — both the characters (real or imaginary), and the authors, with their own diverse worldviews.

See 🗃️Useful Services for the tools I use for library ebooks and audiobooks. See 🏙️Living Life Well for more on how I think books and authors can enrich your life. I should also plug my 📚Kindle Paperwhite (reading)

Books

Books I give as gifts

(I’ll note that this is a bit of a weird category—books can resonate for various reasons at various times and it’s unclear how to choose the right book for someone else.)

A Wrinkle in Time - Madeline L'Engle

A Wrinkle in Time (Time Quintet, #1)

I read it as a kid and fell in love with it. Reread it a number of times. It infused me with a sense of wonder and taught me to see and encounter the I read it as a kid and fell in love with it. Reread it a number of times.

www.goodreads.com

(Also: in 1993, the author recorded audiobooks for the trilogy and in 2018 they remastered the audio for a release in celebration of what would’ve been her 100th birthday. So special.)

The Books of Earthsea (Illustrated) - Ursula K. Le Guin

The Books of Earthsea (Earthsea Cycle, #1-6)

To me the only reason this series got four stars was because of the first one in the series. A wizard of Earthsea. I understand that she wrote them over a decade or so, and that I am supposed to love everything this woman has ever wrote, but to be honest I want to know more about Ged.

www.goodreads.com

The Books of Earthsea (Earthsea Cycle, #1-6)

Surely You're Joking, Mr. Feynman - Richard Feynman

"Surely You're Joking, Mr. Feynman!"

What if a regular guy from Coney Island was a genius. He'd be Richard Feynman. In this autobiography, Feynman goes over his adventures growing up in NYC, at MIT, Princeton, Cornell, Caltech and other locales. He writes in a down to earth style of a wise guy who revolutionized Quantum Field Theory.

www.goodreads.com

(also available as an audiobook)

The Broken Earth Trilogy - N.K. Jemisin

The Broken Earth Trilogy

I see you posted this a few months ago, so my advice is probably too late. If not, given the novels you listed, he would definitely enjoy this series.I see you posted this a few months ago, so my advice is probably too late.

www.goodreads.com

The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy - Douglas Adams

The Ultimate Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy (Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, #1-5)

The universe is a joke. Even before I was shown the meaning of life in a dream at 17 (then promptly forgot it because I thought I smelled pancakes), I knew this to be true--and yet, I have always felt a need to search for the truth, that nebulous, ill-treated creature.

www.goodreads.com

The Ultimate Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy (Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, #1-5)

If you like this, I also recommend Terry Pratchett (start with Equal Rites in the witches thread). The audiobooks read by Stephen Briggs are also a delight (I discovered him with The Wee Free Men via hoopla). And then if you like Terry Pratchett, try Good Omens with Neil Gaiman, and then try the TV show (which I recommend on the 🎞️"Entertainment" page).

Harry Potter - J.K. Rowling

Harry Potter Collection (Harry Potter, #1-6)

I think I'm finally at the age where I feel a bit weird about Harry Potter, but aren't we all? It's hard to write a 7-book series of gigantic epics about a teenage wizard and keep your fanbase at the same age. But whatever.

www.goodreads.com

Harry Potter Collection (Harry Potter, #1-6)

Note that they do get scary pretty quickly. I highly recommend the movies, but they suffer from the same issue.

Humans - Brandon Stanton

Humans

What a wonderful book this was and a genius idea. Loved reading it, the photography was amazing and the stories a good balance of human experience and emotion. Parts were heartbreaking, parts inspiring, parts funny and parts thought provoking. People really are interesting and surprising. A strong five stars!

www.goodreads.com

Brandon is a street photographer, but this second book really highlights his ability to draw out people’s stories. I find the posts from 📷Humans of New York to be remarkably good at cultivating empathy—it’s a skill we should all make time to get better at.

Naked - David Sedaris

Naked

It was relatable, I think that's why I enjoyed it so much. We all have family like this and moments like this even if we don't share them with the worIt was relatable, I think that's why I enjoyed it so much.

www.goodreads.com

He also has a 👩‍🏫Masterclass.

Barbara Kingsolver is special; loaning our copy of The Poisonwood Bible helped my family score a remarkable stepmom and Animal, Vegetable, Miracle is a dream. Demon Copperhead is on my nightstand.

⚠️ The Name of the Wind (Kingkiller Chronicle)

CAUTION: THIS BOOK HAS NOT YET BEEN COMPLETED. START READING AT YOUR OWN RISK.

The Name of the Wind

The Name of the Wind , also called The Kingkiller Chronicle: Day One , is a heroic fantasy novel written by American author Patrick Rothfuss. It is the first book in the ongoing fantasy trilogy The Kingkiller Chronicle, followed by The Wise Man's Fear . It was published on March 27, 2007, by DAW Books.

en.wikipedia.org

Books about other worlds — that help you see the water you're swimming in

The Dispossessed - Ursula K. Le Guin

The Dispossessed (Hainish Cycle, #6)

The philosophical ideas in this book are as resounding now as ever - if you've ever dabbled in political philosophy or comparative theology, Le Guin dThe philosophical ideas in this book are as resounding now as ever - if you've ever dabbled in political philosophy or comparative theology, Le Guin does a fantastic job of weaving bits and pieces from capitalism/socialism/communism, age-old Western/Eastern contrasts, and class structure/conflict.

www.goodreads.com

The Left Hand of Darkness - Ursula K. Le Guin

The Left Hand of Darkness (Hainish Cycle, #4)

The question that permeates Le Guin's 1969 sensational for its time novel about the ambisexual society is what remains once the male and the female labels are stripped away? What is underneath the labels - is it simply humanity? 'Androgynous' - Which is how I could not help but picture the Gethenians.

www.goodreads.com

The Left Hand of Darkness (Hainish Cycle, #4)

Stranger in a Strange Land - Robert Heinlein

Stranger in a Strange Land

I read recently that this book took Heinlein years to write, and he wrote it roughly in two parts - I think the split is pretty identifiable, as the lI read recently that this book took Heinlein years to write, and he wrote it roughly in two parts - I think the split is pretty identifiable, as the last 1/3 of the book seems completely different (and frankly, worse) than the first 2/3.

www.goodreads.com

Practical Books

Everything by 👫Brené Brown

Which Book Do I Read First? | Brené Brown

My team and I receive emails every week from people asking "If I'm new to your work, where do I start? Which book do I read first?" Here's how I think of the progression of my work: The Gifts of Imperfection-Be you. Daring Greatly-Be all in. Rising Strong -Fall. Get up.

brenebrown.com

Which Book Do I Read First? | Brené Brown

The life-changing magic of tidying up by 💁🏻‍♀️KonMari

The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up

No, in my experience so far, the book seems to encourage the reader and participant in this minimalist project to go by his or her own guidance systemNo, in my experience so far, the book seems to encourage the reader and participant in this minimalist project to go by his or her own guidance system and choose which things to keep based on the feelings he or she gets from each object.

www.goodreads.com

She also has a shorter “manga” (graphic novel) version that might reach certain folks more easily.

The 🍱Perfect Health Diet

Perfect Health Diet: Regain Health and Lose Weight by Eating the Way You Were Meant to Eat

Perfect Health Diet: Regain Health and Lose Weight by Eating the Way You Were Meant to Eat [Jaminet, Paul] on Amazon.com. *FREE* shipping on qualifying offers. Perfect Health Diet: Regain Health and Lose Weight by Eating the Way You Were Meant to Eat

amzn.to

Perfect Health Diet: Regain Health and Lose Weight by Eating the Way You Were Meant to Eat

How to Read a Book

What you describe sounds more like a learning disability (LD): LD can be comorbid with other psychological/cognitive disorders or you can mimic such dWhat you describe sounds more like a learning disability (LD): LD can be comorbid with other psychological/cognitive disorders or you can mimic such disorders when taking prescription drugs to treat other disorders.

www.goodreads.com

Not-Quite-Books

This doesn't have a clear category, but, I remember loving the opening section of each annual edition of "America's Best Nonrequired Reading" (Though I've only read the first 8 editions and after the 12th, they replaced Dave Eggers as their editor, so maybe harder to vouch for).

The whole situation is cool:

There's a writing project in SF called "826 Valencia" that facilitates a bunch of cool young people who meet throughout the year and collect the best things they've read, which (beginning in 2002) are then published as part of "The Best American Series."

Once I realized how much I loved the little snippets at the start, I just checked them all out of the library and burned through them all at once. The longer pieces might also be good, but not good enough to capture my (admittedly fickle) attention.

See also a few potentially relevant recommendations in misc tools on the 🗃️Useful Services page, e.g. hoopla and Libby and libraries, and also 📚Kindle Paperwhite (reading)

See also: 👫Brené Brown and 💁🏻‍♀️KonMari